Donald H. Harrison

Emphasis of Thanksgiving Should be Giving

When we look closely at the word Thanksgiving, we see that gratitude in America is not only about inviting family and friends to share a meal, but also about giving to those in need and counting our blessings. [Cailin Acosta]

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Cailin Acosta, Israel, Jewish Religion, Lifestyles, Obituaries & memorials, Philanthropy & Volunteerism, San Diego County, Science, Medicine, & Education, Staff and Bylined Contributors, Travel and Food

Memoir Recalls Smugglers and Gangsters During Prohibition

During the Roaring Twenties, when alcohol sales were banned across the United States, Jewish fisherman Goldy Goldfarb owned a fleet of boats along the secluded shores of Rockaway, New York—an ideal location for smuggling liquor from Canada. [Cailin Acosta]

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Books, Poetry & Short Stories, Business & Finance, Cailin Acosta, Jewish History, Staff and Bylined Contributors, Travel and Food, USA

Parsha Toldot: Wrestling Toward Wholeness and Health

Jacob, who is thoughtful, inward, and searching, represents our spiritual side, the part of us longing for meaning and connection. Esau, who is more physical, impulsive, passionate, stands for our instinctive drives, our hunger to act, to feel, to experience life head-on. [Michael R. Mantell, Ph.D.]

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Jewish Religion, Lifestyles, Michael Mantell, Staff and Bylined Contributors

Theater Review: All Deities Are Not Created Equal

Two Classics professors, Ralph (Kevin O’Connor, Jr.) and Daphne (Katelyn Slater), discover a long-lost copy of Euripides’ play, Andromeda. This discovery could well launch them into academic fame from their present relative obscurity. Well, it would have if it hadn’t gone missing! [Eva Trieger]

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Eva Trieger, San Diego County, Staff and Bylined Contributors, Theatre, Film & Broadcast

OpEd: The Church Needs to Fight Antisemitism

Despite decades of dialogue aimed at better Christian-Jewish relations, the surge in antisemitism has exposed how shallow much of that progress was. Too many Christians remain indifferent, and some even fuel the fire. It is grotesque that certain ministers still blame Jews for COVID-19 or repeat ancient blood libels in modern dress. [Rabbi Dr. Michael Leo Samuel]

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Antisemitism, Jewish History, Michael Leo Samuel-Rabbi, Opinion, Staff and Bylined Contributors, USA

SDSO Showcases Mendelssohn’s Career as Composer and Conductor

Mendelssohn’s overture, The Hebrides, otherwise known as Fingal’s Cave, opened the Nov. 15 concert of the San Diego Symphony in its beautifully renovated hall at the Jacobs Music Center. The overture was inspired by the 20-year old Felix Mendelssohn’s visit to Scotland’s Hebrides Islands. [Eileen Wingard]

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Eileen Wingard, Music, Dance, and Visual Arts, San Diego County, Staff and Bylined Contributors

Jewish Political Briefing: November 18, 2025

In an anticlimax, the U.S. House of Representatives approved a measure by a vote of 427-1 to force the Justice Department to release all materials related to the investigation of the late convicted child sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein and his partner Ghislaine Maxwell.  [Donald H. Harrison]

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California, Donald H. Harrison, Israel, Middle East, San Diego County, Staff and Bylined Contributors, USA

School Which Expelled Three Harassed Jewish Siblings Agrees to Institute Reforms

According to the complaint, bullies at the Nysmith School relentlessly harassed an 11-year-old Jewish student, and called Jews “baby killers,” said Jews deserved to die because of what is happening in Gaza, and told the young girl that everyone hated her for being Jewish. When her parents reported these incidents to the headmaster, no action was taken. (Press Release)

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Antisemitism, Holocaust, Press Release, Science, Medicine, & Education, USA

Sunflower Tribute to Vincent Van Gogh

A special display in the Fireside Room honored van Gogh’s enduring connection to sunflowers. At the artist’s funeral, his coffin was draped with a simple white cloth and adorned with sunflowers and other yellow blossoms—a poignant tribute to the joy and vitality he saw in these flowers. [Cailin Acosta]

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Cailin Acosta, Music, Dance, and Visual Arts, Press Release, San Diego County, The World We Share